Over 150 BILLION unsolicited e-mail messages are being distributed by compromised computers every day, which means that botnets are responsible for approximately 88 percent of all spam out there today.

Recent closures of rogue Internet Service Providers McColo, PriceWert and Real Host have significantly hurt the two biggest botnets of 2009: Cutwail and Srizbi, which at their peak where each responsible for 45.6 percent and 50 percent of all global spam, respectively. Since then, Cutwail has been bumped to the third most powerful botnet and Srizbi has disappeared.

Here’s a look at how some of the newest botnets stack up:

Grum – the most active botnet, responsible for over 23 percent of global spam. Since June, Grum has increased its output per bot massively, pushing it to the top of the current “worst offenders”.

Bobax – has overtaken Cutwail as a top botnet, and is responsible for 15.7 percent of spam. Previously one of the smaller, less active botnets, Bobax has now quadrupled in size and its output per bot per minute is now the highest MessageLabs has ever seen.

Rustock – the largest botnet of all, with an estimated 1.3 to 1.9 million compromised computers in its control. Rustock has roughly doubled in size since June, but doesn’t have a high output. What sets this botnet apart from the rest is its highly automated cycle of spamming activity: spam from this botnet accelerates from 3am EST, peaks around 7am EST and dies down by 7pm EST.

Mega D – has been losing bots quite rapidly. It is now only one tenth the size it was in June. However, it’s now working its bots harder than ever, 2nd only to the output of Bobax in spam per bot per minute!

Maazben – meet the newest botnet, and one to watch in the future. Currently focused on sending out casino-spam, Maazben first appeared in May and has been growing the number of bots rapidly in recent weeks while keeping its output low.

What else can we expect from these powerful machines and how can businesses safeguard against their threats? You can find additional information on this and other online threats here.

If you enjoyed this article, why not subscribe to this Blog via RSS, or email? It’s easy; just click on this link and you’ll never miss another Tech Thoughts article.

Blogroll

Chicago Mac/PC Support
I have twenty five years experience and Apple Certified Technician and Microsoft Certified System Administrator (MCSA). It is my goal to help others by providing this free information.

Confessions of a Pop Culture Addict
Sam Tweedle is a writer and pop culture addict who has been entertaining and educating fans of the pop culture journey for a decade. His writing has been featured in The National Post, CNN.com, and Filmfax magazine.

Digsites – An Interactive Agency
Digsites is a Philadelphia based interactive and internet development company founded in 2005. Our primary focus is set on providing personalized client solutions including Lead Generation Software, Websites, Web Services, Intranets, Social Networks Integ

FindTheBest
FindTheBest is an unbiased, fact-driven decision engine. We organize and present data in a consumer-friendly format so that you can make quick and informed decisions based on what’s important to you.

Guru Habits
You will find an abundance of articles and other resources on this site to help you achieve your personal development goals in many areas of your life. If you are looking for deep discussions on complex psychological theories, you’ll need to look elsew

Kensington SafeZone
This blog is all about physical security, and if you’re an IT Manager or SMB owner, this is the perfect reference for you. Here, you can find commentary on the latest industry news, security best practices and links to our various smart made simple™ s

Malware Removal Guide for Windows
This guide will help you clean your computer of malware. If you think your computer is infected with a virus or some other malicious software, you may want to use this guide.

Stop Badware.org
StopBadware is the only not for profit organization focused on protecting the public from badware websites. From our start as a project of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, we have been led by top thinkers in the fields

TuneUp (Blog about Windows)
Our blog is written by a team made up of certified Microsoft experts, authors, and editors from major computer magazines. The people behind this blog also head up one of the most successful tuning suites around, called TuneUp Utilities 2011.

Why Evolution Is True
Jerry A. Coyne, Ph.D is a Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolution at the University of Chicago and a member of both the Committee on Genetics and the Committee on Evolutionary Biology.